Students voiced their concerns about a proposed guaranteed tuition model and another year of tuition increases during another public forum intended to educate students on the tuition-setting process.
University of Oregon President Michael Schill and some members of the Tuition and Fee Advisory Board hosted the President’s Forum on Monday, Feb. 24, in the EMU Ballroom. About 45 people attended.
What did the tuition board recommend before the forum? TFAB recommended 3% annual tuition increases for ongoing resident and nonresident students for up to four years — in addition to a 10.75% tuition increase for next year’s incoming resident freshmen, while out-of-state freshmen would see a 7% tuition increase if the board’s proposal goes through.
The board also recommended a guaranteed tuition model where incoming students would pay the same tuition for five years — no more, no less. The board offered a compromise to ongoing students through consistent 3% increases each year for the next four years.
Related: “Tuition board recommends range of tuition increases and 5-year guaranteed rates”
What did students say about the plan? Students at the forum asked about whether tuition pays for constructing new buildings around campus (which it usually doesn’t), critiqued the guaranteed tuition model and expressed concerns for continually rising prices.
“I didn’t want to be accusatory in this because I feel like a lot the perspective is shifted and pointed towards higher ups in administration,” said third-year architecture and German student Kimo Fong. “So I just want to try and get a better understanding between body and structure.”
“Consultation does not equal consent,” said Eric Howanietz, a political science major and editor in chief of The Student Insurgent, UO’s leftist student newspaper. “I don’t think the students of UO consent to this if they were given the chance to make a decision. There’s just too many variables [with guaranteed tuition.]”
What did administrators say? Chief Financial Officer Jamie Moffitt outlined the structure of the university budget, rising costs and the deficit the school is attempting to close — essentially boiling down several months of TFAB meetings into a 20-minute-long presentation.
“I wish our state gave us more money. They don’t,” said Moffitt, pointing to declining levels of state appropriation as a stressor on the university budget.
“That puts a lot of pressure on the budget and a lot of pressure on tuition,” Moffitt continued. “We cannot continue operating every year with a deficit.”
Vice President of Student Life Kevin Marbury, who chairs TFAB along with Moffitt, laid out the general idea of a guaranteed tuition model could work at UO — how long the guarantee would last (five years), who it could apply to (current and future students in different ways) and how such a model would improve prospects of recruiting students (by a significant amount, he said).
“It at least puts us on the same playing field,” Marbury said.
What happens next? Schill will make a decision on whether to recommend the tuition board’s proposal or offer his own recommendation to the UO board of trustees in early March. From there, the board of trustees will make the final decision about tuition rates and the future of tuition setting.
The Daily Emerald will continue to report on the tuition-setting process throughout the year. Questions about tuition? Contact Senior News Reporter Ryan Nguyen at [email protected] or Associate News Editor Zack Demars at [email protected].
